I survived the trecherously long day of travelling! The flight across the Pacific was 14 hours, but it went well (despite my uncontrollable ADD and difficulty with being still and quite for more than 12.5 minutes.) I watched a movie, they fed us some dinner, and I actually slept for about 8 hours! Over-seas flights are much more enjoyable than the typical flight within the States. I drank a couple glasses of wine and popped some benadryl; I was out! Before I knew it, they were serving breakfast. As we were descending from the 40,000 ft we were travelling at for the past 14 hours, I began to see the ocean with multiple islands in the distance. New Zealand looks so beautiful from up there. It's so green! There are pastures of green grass intertwined with winding green hills and trees. It was amazing! I landed here at about 7am today (which is Friday.)
It didn't take me long to become a "Kiwi Citizen." I opened a checking account, got my Tax ID number, and a Cell phone all within a couple hours on dry land. All incoming calls and texts are free to my phone, I only pay outgoing usage. So, go ahead, text and call away all you want!! However, some text messages get lost in outerspace, as there is a different system here, so if I dont get back to you--try sending it again! Be sure you dial the entire number with the country code: 011-64-27-238-6179 You may be able to get a cheap calling card from Wal-Mart or something---It will probably be spendy to call from your cell phone. I got a calling card, and it is only $0.10NZ a minute= $0.06US If this is actually true, that is super cheap!
I am going to stay in Auckland until Monday, then I am headed to see this great country. I booked a 30-35 day bus trip around the country starting on Monday morning. The bus trip is very similar to the one I did in Australia. I can get off anywhere I want and a new bus comes through every other day. This is nice, because sometimes you want to stay longer in an area, or you just want to switch up the people you are travelling with. I am travelling with a company called "Stray," and their motto is "Get Further of the Beaten Track." I can't wait! We will be doing all kinds of crazy things from an overnight Maori Cultural stay to Dune Surfing to Swimming in Hot Pools--where the "Hotness" comes up from the center of the earth--as there are many volcanos (both active and inactive) in New Zealand.
I promise this Blog will get more interesting as I dive head first into the amazingness of this place! I can't wait to take you along!
That's all for now...Be sure to stay in touch!
It didn't take me long to become a "Kiwi Citizen." I opened a checking account, got my Tax ID number, and a Cell phone all within a couple hours on dry land. All incoming calls and texts are free to my phone, I only pay outgoing usage. So, go ahead, text and call away all you want!! However, some text messages get lost in outerspace, as there is a different system here, so if I dont get back to you--try sending it again! Be sure you dial the entire number with the country code: 011-64-27-238-6179 You may be able to get a cheap calling card from Wal-Mart or something---It will probably be spendy to call from your cell phone. I got a calling card, and it is only $0.10NZ a minute= $0.06US If this is actually true, that is super cheap!
I am going to stay in Auckland until Monday, then I am headed to see this great country. I booked a 30-35 day bus trip around the country starting on Monday morning. The bus trip is very similar to the one I did in Australia. I can get off anywhere I want and a new bus comes through every other day. This is nice, because sometimes you want to stay longer in an area, or you just want to switch up the people you are travelling with. I am travelling with a company called "Stray," and their motto is "Get Further of the Beaten Track." I can't wait! We will be doing all kinds of crazy things from an overnight Maori Cultural stay to Dune Surfing to Swimming in Hot Pools--where the "Hotness" comes up from the center of the earth--as there are many volcanos (both active and inactive) in New Zealand.
I promise this Blog will get more interesting as I dive head first into the amazingness of this place! I can't wait to take you along!
That's all for now...Be sure to stay in touch!
2 comments:
we can't wait to hear all about your adventures!
LOVE, LOVE LOVE the blog!! Have a fantastic time on the bus tour and keep us posted! :)
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